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1.6.4 Selection of offshore sites

 

The Habitats Regulations apply to the UK land area and its territorial sea (out to 12 nautical miles from low-water mark) (see Section 1.1.3.1). Until May 2001 there was no legislation in the UK implementing the Habitats Directive in the offshore area, from 12 200 nm. Consequently, no sites have yet been selected in the UK offshore area. The Offshore Petroleum Activities (Conservation of Habitats) Regulations 2001, covering oil and gas developments, were introduced in May 2001, and new and/or amended Habitats Regulations are shortly to be introduced to provide a mechanism for the designation of offshore SACs and SPAs.

In November 1999, the UK High Court found in favour of Greenpeace in its case against the UK Government regarding implementation of the Habitats Directive offshore (CO/1336/99). The court found that "the Habitats Directive applies to the UK continental shelf and to the superadjacent [sic] waters up to a limit of 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the territorial sea is measured". Prior to this judgement, the UK Government view was that the Habitats Directive did not apply outside UK territorial waters (12 nm from the coast). The UK Government is now implementing the Directive in the UK offshore area (from 12 200 nm) (Figure 1.5). The JNCC was asked in 2000 by the UK government to provide information to enable identification of offshore SACs (Johnston et al. 2002). Since 2002, JNCC has been investigating selection of offshore SACs (and SPAs) in the seas beyond territorial waters on behalf of Defra, following a similar process to that undertaken for terrestrial and inshore SACs (and SPAs).

 

SAC selection fig 1.5 - chart of UK territorial waters and UK continental shelf designated area

 

Figure 1.5: Likely maximum extent of UK offshore area. Based on UK Continental Shelf designations, and including UK limit of territorial waters (12 nm). (Note that the area is not coincident with the 200 mile fisheries limit.) The total extent of UK waters (UKCS designated area and territorial waters) is approximately 867,400 km2, of which 161,200 km2 is territorial waters (including around Rockall) and the offshore area 706,200 km2. These figures exclude the territorial waters of the Isle of Man and the Channel Isles.


World Vector Shoreline copyright US Defense Mapping Agency


Bathymetry copyright GEBCO Digital Atlas, British Oceanographic Data Centre on behalf of IOC and IHO 1994 & 1997.

UK Continental Shelf designations courtesy Department of Trade and Industry via DEAL website www.ukdeal.co.uk

 


 
 
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